Hobbies to improve my hand dexterity?

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Alpha13

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Hey guys, any suggestions for what I could do to work on my hand dexterity? Something to get me working on that would help more than just my dexterity. I'm still at least a few years away from even applying to a school, but I constantly wonder if I'll be able to work with my hands well enough to cut it as a dentist.

Thanks

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Mastication!

(whatever happened to that thread??)
 
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Alpha13 said:
Hey guys, any suggestions for what I could do to work on my hand dexterity? Something to get me working on that would help more than just my dexterity. I'm still at least a few years away from even applying to a school, but I constantly wonder if I'll be able to work with my hands well enough to cut it as a dentist.

Thanks

Sculpture, ceramics, building models, caligraphy, playing a lot of duck hunt, or the board game Operation, Hungry Hungry Hippos would be good to.
 
if you were a real jedi you'd close your eyes and just use the force when working with patients... and your light saber would make procedures a lot faster...that's why all the jedi dentists make so much money.
 
picking your nose...ha ha ha ;)

Get some modeling clay and look at something and see if you can recreate it, only smaller

or get some wire and use hand tools to mold it into something like, say, a dream catcher. (something small, with lots of detail, and 3-d)
 
Walk up to random people, grad their hands and shout, "1, 2, 3, 4, I DECLAIR A THUMB WAR!" With enough practice you will be able to dominate any one who challenges you. A lot of people don't realize that a thumb war is a really common interview tactic that many schools have decided to implement this year.
 
Cross-stitching while watching Sportscenter and playing Gershwin are two of my favorites.
 
hands down, video games.

improves your hand eye coordination, improves your ability to learn new things, adaptibility, makes you perform every task faster, improves your memory....

everything I'm good at can be attributed to video games.
 
knitting, cross-stitching, quilting, woodworking, metal working
 
I used to play my N64 all the time because it improved hand skills and because it's the best thing ever. :rolleyes:

In college, I taught myself to play the guitar and that improved my hand skills.

I'm going to be buying myself a Gamecube :love: for Christmas to improve my hand skills. And just because I miss video games. :p
 
every time the manual dexteritty thing comes up i want to say video games, but i just dont think i could ever say that to an adcom haha
 
KxM99 said:
every time the manual dexteritty thing comes up i want to say video games, but i just dont think i could ever say that to an adcom haha

I said video games to all my adcoms and I cited all the studies that has demonstrated greater proficiency and competency amongst those that play video games vs. those that don't. eg. the study comparing cardiothoracic surgeons, video gamers: performed everythign 30-40% faster with less errors, or there's a book out on this topic called Everything Bad for you is Good for you that examined how video games sharpen many mental processes.
 
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I always liked inconspicuous pocket-pool
 
lifting a beer bottle to your mouth.. you'll get plenty of time in dental school to improve your hand skills. don't worry about it.
 
Go out on dates more. As your success rates improve, you will have enough opportunities to improve your um...manual dexterity.
 
Dr. Parm said:
Go out on dates more. As your success rates improve, you will have enough opportunities to improve your um...manual dexterity.

What are my chances of improving my manual dexterity if I bring my brother on these dates?
 
Not in direct response to what you said, I just read your profile and how you have purposely made it sound elitist and condescending. Haha, interesting. I am glad you have such an enormous amount of interviews, you probably deserve it bro. I am just happy with my three, as I just have to attend one school in the end lol. Keep it up.
 
Thumb Fight?
 
phremius said:
hands down, video games.

improves your hand eye coordination, improves your ability to learn new things, adaptibility, makes you perform every task faster, improves your memory....

everything I'm good at can be attributed to video games.
Amen to that.
 
Dr. Parm said:
Not in direct response to what you said, I just read your profile and how you have purposely made it sound elitist and condescending. Haha, interesting. I am glad you have such an enormous amount of interviews, you probably deserve it bro. I am just happy with my three, as I just have to attend one school in the end lol. Keep it up.

Elitist? Me? In what way?
 
Here is one simple thing you can do to improve or polish your skills. Hang a small board in front of a mirror. While looking in the mirror, write your name or draw simple objects on the board. You'll be surprised how difficult that will be and how much that will help you. Good Luck. It's never early to prepare. :thumbup:
 
KxM99 said:
every time the manual dexteritty thing comes up i want to say video games, but i just dont think i could ever say that to an adcom haha

I actually said it on a student/teacher interview and my student was surprised and said how great it was to be into video games and started asking about my favorite systmes. :thumbup:
 
dat_student II said:
What are my chances of improving my manual dexterity if I bring my brother on these dates?

HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! This is ridiculously funny. Is anyone else peeing their pants laughing at this or am I just going completely loopy? :clap:
 
Playing guitar for the last 7 years (since 9th grade) has immensely helped me improve my manual dexterity.
I would still give up anything to be a professional guitarist. Well... maybe not dentistry. Oh man... Am i forgetting surfing. I would give up anything for that too... but still not dentistry. :)
I keep passion separate from pleasure.
 
practice using chopsticks... :D
 
LadyxJC said:
practice using chopsticks... :D

Are you talking about catching flies with them, or just eating?
 
whittle.... only if you have earned your whittlin-chip. BSA 4-life.
 
Play the tabla. (woohooo post number 500!!!! :laugh: :laugh: )
 
tinman831 said:
What's a tabla?

A small hand drum of the northern regions of South Asia (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, northern India, Pakistan)
 
TimR said:
whittle.... only if you have earned your whittlin-chip. BSA 4-life.

We called it a toten-chip, and all my corners got torn off for playing with a hatchet one time.
 
donkeywhisperer said:
We called it a toten-chip, and all my corners got torn off for playing with a hatchet one time.

i think that's what i meant..... it's been a while. i think i confused it with fireman chit? somthing like that...
 
donkeywhisperer said:
snake charming

You kill me, bro!

Anyway, if you can learn to tie flies (fly fishing flies), then you will have great manual dexterity. Trust me.

Btw, I hope you video-gamers go to my school so we can have Halo tournaments on the weekends. I think it would be very wise to fit Halo 2 into the first and second year dent school curriculum.
 
You don't need all these great hand skills to become a dentist.
What you need is practice during dental school.
Practice drilling...practice practice practice
 
toysareus said:
You don't need all these great hand skills to become a dentist.
What you need is practice during dental school.
Practice drilling...practice practice practice

Yeah or you can have great hand skills and never have to practice and therefor end up with a ****load of free time to hang out, read and party. Gee, I wonder which option I'd rather pick? ;)
 
Unless there are schools out there that actually test your manual dexterity ( I doubt even 2% of the schools do have such a test in place), skill with your hand is something you are seeking to learn at dental school. Spot me on this one phremius, or anyone else who is currently in dental school. I mean, unless you have parkinson's disease or some other disastrous malady, you should be fine. Just my two cents on the issue.
 
phremius said:
Yeah or you can have great hand skills and never have to practice and therefor end up with a ****load of free time to hang out, read and party. Gee, I wonder which option I'd rather pick? ;)

In my class, even the students with the best hand skills had to practice a lot. Jewlery making is a lot different than drilling a tooth.
 
dentalengineer said:
watching porn
:)


I was wondering when the crude, sexual remarks were going to come in. Let's keep this thread on topic, or at least G-rated, lest I close the thing down - and I really don't like doing that.
 
Sprgrover said:
I was wondering when the crude, sexual remarks were going to come in. Let's keep this thread on topic, or at least G-rated, lest I close the thing down - and I really don't like doing that.
Sorry about that.
 
learn to type 60 wpm, flawlessly.
wood carving
fly tying
sculpture
guitar
work on your car
halo2
halo1
GTA
UFC... :D
 
toysareus said:
In my class, even the students with the best hand skills had to practice a lot. Jewlery making is a lot different than drilling a tooth.
I haven't done any drilling in my classes, but jewlery making is the closest thing I can think of.
 
Sprgrover said:
I was wondering when the crude, sexual remarks were going to come in.
That's exactly what I'm wondering too. I'm shocked it even lasted this long.
 
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